How Having a Baby Helps with Relationship Building

I am pleased to be writing this post (and tired!) because my wife just gave birth to our second (and last!) child on Friday. I now have two daughters so I will have my hands full!

Over the last few days since my daughter was born, I have experienced and observed the following three relationship building activities:

1. Be Nice to Doctors and Nurses - This should go without saying but the nicer you are with the hospital staff, the better service you will receive.  Really, this is true for any encounter with other people.  The next time that you are at the doctor's office treat everyone extra nice to see if you have a better experience.  You will start to feel better about yourself because you will make other people feel good.
2. Tell Your Friends (and Network) the Good News - Again, this should be a no brainer, however, some people need reminding.  When something good happens to you, take this as an opportunity to reach out to your friends and select people within your network.  You should always strive to get in front of people so having a child is a great way to share some good news.  At the same time, reach out to old contacts to give them an update on your life.  It isn't necessary to let everyone in your network know about your new baby because some of your relationships are purely business.  While it is good to get to know people on a personal level too, make a judgment call as to who you should notify.
3. Accept Hospitality from People - When something major happens in your life, friends and acquaintances will usually ask you if they can help.  While in the hospital, lots of people offered to help us including nurses, parents, friends, and neighbors.  Just like in business, you should accept hospitality whenever you can.  People have gone out of their way to offer to help so show them the respect and take them up on this generosity.

Comments

[Mike Maddaloni]

Congrats to you Jason and especially to your wife!

mp/m

[Dr. Pete]

Congratulations, Jason; that's great news. It just goes to shows you that good networking is a habit, not just something you do at networking events.

[Jason Jacobsohn]

Thanks Mike and Pete. You are absolutely right that good networking is a habit. It should become a natural part of what you do.